“Lunch would often be a pasty from Greggs, and I’d eat crisps and chocolates.

“I never suffered with my weight; there was never anything wrong with me except I was obese, so I felt like I was getting away with it and I needed to get healthier.

“I only intended to lose a bit of weight - I thought I would just be a bit healthier.”

The key to Ms Hiscutt’s success was that she found a weight-loss plan that worked for her rather than having to make drastic changes to her lifestyle.

“I can still eat a lot of food but it is mostly stuff that is good for me. It is just about making little changes, like having boiled rice instead of pilau rice.

“If I’m following a recipe from a magazine, I’ll just use things that are low fat and make them healthier. It works - and anyone can do it.

“I think you have just got to do it for yourself. Find something that works for you.

“I lost 6st and I didn’t know where to take it from there. I just decided I wanted to run, which was an alien feeling, and I felt like I had more energy. I was amazed the weight kept coming off because I have never been little.”

After slimming down even more, she decided to take on another challenge - the 26.2-mile London Marathon.

“I have had my peaks and troughs, but what I love is that I’m raising money for Cancer Research, and I will be running in my home town,” said Ms Hiscutt, who is originally from south London.

“It is a huge honour and very surreal to be running the biggest and best marathon in the world.”